Como comprar levitra online Why in the midst of success, I’m preparing to leave the US.

This was a difficult post to write, as I prefer the message of optimism. However, I think it’s an important one for the liberty-minded entrepreneurs out there, and it really shows the lateness of the hour in the US.

After much soul-searching and deliberation, I’ve decided it’s time to go. This is not an easy decision for me…I live in the closest thing to a real Gulch I know, have built a successful business, have friends and family, and many deep roots here. However, my business is now facing two government actions which show me that it’s time to take action of my own.

Some here know my story, but for those who don’t, a brief history. 6 years ago, two friends and I saw a problem – lack of broadband access in our rural Oregon county – and we knew it was a business opportunity. We pooled a few thousand dollars of savings and started building our own ISP from scratch, using the just-released AirMAX equipment from Ubiquiti.

Slowly and steadily, powered by income from satisfied customers, we’ve grown over the years. We now cover over 500 square miles of rural Oregon with real broadband speed, up to 26Mbps, which beats the new FCC broadband definition of 25Mb. Do you live out on a ridge miles from town, or up on the mountainside in the trees? We can hang a dish on your house, point it at one of our towers and get you a quality work-from-home telecommuting-grade connection.

We’ve solved the rural broadband problem here! It didn’t take buckets of public money, all it took was a handful of dedicated entrepreneurs 5 years of their lives, busting ass to build a completely independent parallel communications grid. But now after all that effort and just as it’s starting to really pay off, I’m facing an untenable situation straight out of Atlas Shrugged.

I’ll share the State action first. For the past several years, Comcast and Oregon have been in a dispute over certain taxes. Comcast has been paying them while disputing, because of course that’s how it works with the State. However, recently it seemed as though Comcast had a legal case and might not be liable for those taxes. The problem Oregon was facing, was that most of the counties had not been putting that money into escrow like they should, but spending it on bread & circuses, using it to shore up pension funds that officials had gambled on the market with, and so on.

Giving the money back was therefore not politically acceptable, and so the Oregon Supreme Court did some fancy footwork and found a way to reclassify Comcast as a different type of company, one that WAS subject to those taxes. Problem solved! One small side effect of course, was that in order to make the legal dance work, ALL telecoms in Oregon got reclassified.

So 5 weeks ago, I received a letter from the State Assessors, letting me know that my small two-man company was now subject to ‘Central Assessment’ for property taxes. We’re facing a fascinating new realm of taxable things known as ‘intangibles’. Things like brand recognition, goodwill, potential coverage area. Stuff that isn’t actually making me any in-hand cash yet, a tax on future effort I haven’t carried out!

The second action, this at the Federal level, is what really cements it for me. Many will have heard of the ongoing Network Neutrality / Title-II legislation being worked on by Congress and the FCC. On the face of it, it’s spun as ‘good for Internet Freedom’ and ‘levels the playing field’. The reality of it, is reclassification of ALL US broadband providers as Public Utilities at the Federal level.

So, a company I and my friends built from scratch, that doesn’t receive public subsidies or use public rights of way, will become public property. The American population has been groomed to such a level of entitlement that they see Internet service as a human right, like air or water. They feel they have a right to what I provide, a right to my labor, and the government is only too happy to oblige.

While the FCC assures small providers that wage & price controls are not part of this legislation, those of us who can read legalese can dig into the next round of this, scheduled for late 2016 or early 2017, and see that they do indeed plan just that. They aren’t calling it that of course, but it’s de-facto Nationalization. There’s one little factor they haven’t considered though, and that’s whether I’ll stand still for it.

I won’t! When this goes through, I’m out. I’ve joined an Entrepreneurial community project in the Lakes region of Chile, Fort Galt, and am pouring the same energy into it that enabled me to build an ISP from scratch. I am already seeing it becoming a buzzing-with-creativity hub, with the potential for creating the seeds of decentralized civilization.

For those doers, makers or creators who are still putting off their exit strategy, please reconsider. For those feeling that you have too deep of roots, thinking they won’t come for your industry, they will. They just came for mine.

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I want to say thanks to everyone for their kind words and concern! Was not expecting this to resonate with so many.
Don’t worry, I’ll be fine! Events like this are hard, but a good catalyst for personal change. It took me 5 years to do this from scratch, I can do it again. No I’m not tearing my network down, friends and fellow businesses depend on it! It’ll still exist and persist in some form, it just won’t be mine any more….

I’ve wanted to live in the Patagonia most of my adult life, and am aware that Chile is not a panacea or promised land of freedom. In this world as it is today, the only things we can truly own are ourselves and our skills. The only thing we can truly rely on is ourselves, and our friends. I’m meeting some wonderful, skilled and focused people through the Fort Galt project, and I’m incredibly optimistic about the future of humanity. If I and 2 friends can build an ISP from scratch, what will 100 friends accomplish? Best wishes all…I’m looking forward to living under Southern stars again.

This is really a terrible situation, unfortunately not all that surprising given the industry you’re in. Indeed I’ve spoken to a progressive friend who basically said exactly what you said, there are those that believe internet access is a fundamental right, like food or water. Crazy.
Have you considered raising your rates to cover the cost of the new taxes and then explaining to all your customers why you are raising them in explicit detail, i.e. with this post? Perhaps a small but vocal group of hundred (thousands?) of people might lobby their local representatives to grant exceptions for carriers that operate over no “public” accommodations. Yes it’s a long shot I suppose and given net neutrality it will probably come to pass at the federal level some day and trust me, I know your pain all too well. Good luck no matter what you do.
BTW I was looking to do exactly what you have done in our neighborhood on a small scale. Where should I look for information on how to set something like that up? I’ve set up a basic AirMax system myself (2 way) but have no idea how to set up one-to-many system with load balancing/network segregation, etc. Any pointers for info on how to properly build such a system would be appreciated (if you don’t mind… just thought I’d ask since you sound like you’re an expert in exactly this sort of setup). Thanks!

Thanks, Greg. I have a lot of friends and fellow businesses here that depend on what I do, to enable what they do. I can’t leave them stranded, and I’m already exploring the potential for creating a customer-owned entity or even a nonprofit if we have to. It’ll still be here, but it won’t be mine….

Tragic. I can’t blame you in the least, but I hate (HATE) seeing this happen. The fact that our government has the ability to take so much without even a whimper being raised in opposition is appalling.
Please, keep us posted.

Stirring piece, Travis. Most entrepreneurs will be able to relate in one way or another. I have an engineer friend back in Canada who pays 50% of everything he makes to the state and it drives him crazy but sentimental traps have held him back from leaving. He’s well into his 50s now and has just accepted his slavery. It’s really sad and so I’m elated whenever I meet someone who has decided to take action to remedy his reality. We’re setting an example and if we shine bright enough, others won’t be able to help but follow.

Taxes? Somewhere between not much and hardly anything. I have no big pile of cash, they made sure of that.

I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. Never put energy into someone elses property unless you have a solid contract. The way our civilization is currently structured, the only thing we truly own is ourselves and the skills we possess.

I’ll be just fine, and although there are big challenges I’m incredibly optimistic about what lies ahead.

The Struggle is real. I respect the choice to leave but I also think that you could do well by telling your customers that you are doubling rates or shutting down the business because of state regulations. If they value your service, they would defend you. If anything can stand up to the government, it’s small unified communities.

(disclosure: I’m planning to move to Mexico this year, but I don’t have anything to defend here.)

I decided to leave Canada after a couple years of studying law and assisting my friends in court. I was under the impression that individuals could stand up to the state if they knew the rules of the game. I was wrong. Case after case showed me just how little the rules matter and just how easy it is for a judge to ruin someone. At the then of the day, they have the military and we don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of confronting them directly. When we resist at all, they jail us, confiscate our resources, assault our reputations, and even if you win your defense case, the damage is already done. Flight is the only viable option left when it’s no longer possible to fight.

It’s absolutely outrageous what the state has done to you! My level of disgust for what this country has become only increases by the day. What you so vividly described it is straight out of Atlas Shrug, like you said. I’m just happy that you’ve found a supportive community of other entrepreneurial-minded people to contribute your talents to, and I have no doubts that you’ll thrive there. I’m counting the days when I’ll be leaving the US, too. I’ve had enough of this insanity.

Wow that’s terrible. I’ve been seriously considering departure so this article really hits home. I’ll be in Anarchapulco next week, hopefully that will help me come to a decision. Not sure I can last another year here. Good luck in Chile!

GO! Good for you, a real world example of Midas Mulligan or Ellis Wyatt. Go and prosper, best wishes and I share the sentiments of others – you will do well. Maybe I too will join you some day not too far in the future.

I only hope you can report back with your experiences so others may see the path, the good roads and the speed bumps.

Great article, Travis. Not surprised, though. I’ve known about this situation for decades now, from various american friends including Doug Casey and Porter Stansberry. I live in the Patagonia Region of southern Argentina, on the border with Chile. I’ve been living here for over 40 years now. And it’s been a blessing (despite the government in Buenos Aires… too far away from here, and with little influence). Chile (despite Bachelet) is a very good option. Hope to visit you sometime.
Cheers !!

Wait, while I sincerely appreciate the sentiment and struggle of the author, Fort Galt? Isn’t that part of Galt’s Gulch? From what I understand, that project is still a mess and there are extensive legal actions and problems. I moved to Chile, and I would recommend doing a LOT of due diligence. Didn’t you read the countless horror stories? I find this very surprising as a solution considering my life was ruined for a time for going there. Most of the employees that left their lives to go are still owed money and last I checked the original investors in that land still do not have title.

I just read that Fort Galt is a different place. Still, it’s REALLY difficult to secure your land rights. At GGC, people were promised so much and were delivered virtually nothing. They have tried to fight this legally, and it continues to be an expensive endless struggle. A lot of those participants had a lot of money to fight it too, and still it’s a disaster. I am VERY wary of foreign land projects, PLEASE do 3x more due diligence than you would in the US, Chile has some great qualities, but it’s not utopian. Trying to fight things in the legal system is difficult. The Fort Galt site doesn’t even have pictures of actual structures, just plans. I almost quit liberty after Galt’s Gulch, and this project doesn’t look established enough to warrant investment yet imo, though perhaps you have had a different experience. Large community creation needs more than a liberty mindset, it needs years of experience in many aspects that go into building such a development, familiarity with local regulations and laws, and the ability to execute.

Our project is very different from GGC for a number of key reasons (besides the obvious difference in management): First of all, we are down in Valdivia, where it rains half the time and water rights are not an issue. Also, it is not an environmentally protected area like the land around Santiago. Central Chile has a ton of extra regulations to deal with that simply don’t exist down here in the south. Another key difference is that our project is just one small property rather than a whole sprawling valley. We don’t need to do any subdividing or any of that crap here so As soon as the land is purchased, we can build. Nothing is built yet because we are not doing anything until there are enough members on board to make it work from start to finish. The last thing I would want is to get halfway in and then run out of funding and have it fall apart. We’re obsessive about doing things right and scoring a much-needed win in the shadow of GGC. I absolutely agree with your statement that we need more than a liberty mindset though. I think we can both know a good number of armchair theorists that can’t really get anything done. This is why we interview all potential members and screen such people out. This is strictly a place for doers. We don’t even care if you self-identify as a libertarian or not. We focus more on personal character and entrepreneurship. We don’t want anyone coming down here to look for a local wage job, we want people with their finances already in order with a small business or freelance profession already running. My partner Luke has en extensive background in construction, and has lined up a company in New Hampshire to fly in and build the place once we’re ready to do so that we don’t need to deal with sketchy Chilean contractors. At this point, we’re just building up our membership and won’t be accepting any money from anyone until after we have hit critical mass.

On a side note, once you’ve read over the Plan page on the website and have a good idea of what’s going on, I’d like to invite you chat live sometime. I know you spent more time at GGC than me and probably have some useful stories and advice to share. If we do a hangout or skype call, you could also meet the rest of my team and ask any questioning that you might still have (of course you could record the call and share it afterwards, if you like). Basically, I’d like to get as many tough, critical voices as possible into the greater conversation because people like you don’t hold back. They spot cracks in the armor and point them out before anyone else does and I think we could all use people like that around, especially in the early stages.

I have a group of friends very diligiently working on building a community of liberty focused indidividuals in Nicaragua. http://thecacaofarm.com/

When I shared your post with one of the founders, http://roslynross.blogspot.com/ she so inspired by it that she requested me to invite you down for a visit. If you can arrange a side-trip on your way down to Chile, we would be very happy to host and share with you.

Maybe it is Oregon that is the problem. I live in the 2nd freest state (Alaska is rated first and we here maintain 2nd) and have had a little business for 25 years with no problem. We regularly pay a corporate business license but with no state taxes; we exist without problem. Of course, the federal people get their pound of flesh, but doesn’t seem to interfere.

This was linked to on another blog which in turn I was sent a link to by a friend.

Honestly, I can’t help but admire what you’ve accomplished (start an ISP despite the barriers to entry) and what you’ve decided to do now that the general public has been duped into thinking that Title II won’t degrade investment in this industry.

If you haven’t already, I would love for you to do a blog post on what it took to start an ISP in the first place. People need to know the red tape that must be cut through.